My gf and I are going to Japan for the first time in late October. I wanted to get some advice on if people think our itinerary is too packed for the 16ish days that we are going. As well as if anyone has any recommendations for places that we are missing and should definitely see. We dont really care much to go to too many museums or theme parks. In general we are definitely looking for some variety and trying to see the different aspects of the country. I have italicized stuff that we are unsure or would just appreciate some insight on (all at the bottom of the city notes).
**Day 1 — Land at HND at 2pm and go to Kyoto**
We land at 2pm at HND and will pick up our JR Pass and get on a train to Kyoto. Staying walking distance from Gion area so we will probably just walk around and recover from the long journey.
**Day 2 – 5 — Kyoto**
Sights to see:
* Arashiyama area/bamboo forest
* Kinkakuji (brief stop)
* Kiyomizuadera/Gion (both walking distance to accommodation)
* Fushimi Inari Taisha
* Day trip to Nara to see the deer
I have heard Kyoto is nice to see on bike so I definitely plan on doing that. We were thinking that we could lump the Arashiyama area and Kinkakuji in on one day. Then, wake up early to see the tori gates and then go to Nara on the next day. And just kinda chill and walk around maybe see some shrines and kiymizudera on the last day. We also have the morning-afternoon of when we are leaving to walk around as well. *Not too sure if we should look for extra stuff to do here as I am sure there is more or just take our extra time to explore a bit.*
**Day 5 – 9 — Osaka**
Sights to see:
* Partial day trip to Himeji (I want to see Himeji castle not too bothered on skipping Osaka castle because of this)
* Dotonbori/Triangle Park on Halloween
* Try Okonomiyaki
* Day trip to Hiroshima/Miyajima
So, I wanted to be around Osaka and the Dontonbori area at Halloween and it is pretty much the only thing that we are scheduling around. That being said, I have heard that Osaka is super similar to Tokyo so we are treating it more as a base for a couple day trips and just walking around the Osaka area in our spare time with not much planned. *We are currently undecided on if we should stay in Nanba or Umeda.*
**Day 9 – 11 — Takayama**
Sights to see:
* Visit Shirakawago
* Chill in the town
Wanted to do a little break from the cities so I have planned two nights in Takayama where we can visit shirakawago and just chill and walk around the town. Will be leaving right in the morning on the last day to try and get the most out of Tokyo in the end. *If we don’t have enough time in our other plans we could potentially axe this part of the trip although it would be a real shame.*
**Day 11 – 16 — Tokyo**
Sights to see:
* Sensoji
* Meji jingu
* Asakusa
* Shinjuku/Golden Gai
* Shibuya
* Harajuku
* Ikebukuro
* Akihabara
* Tokyo tower
* Pokemon center/cafe (will book cafe ahead)
* Harry potter cafe
* Donguri (Ghibli stores)
* Mugiwara store (one piece stores)
I think we will most likely be staying around the Ikebukuro area here. Clearly this is where I will be spending some time looking at anime stuff (gf is not as much into it lol). But other than the couple anime stores and such that I want to check out, we mostly just want to see the neighborhoods and whatever sights we can fit in our schedules that day. *Hoping 6 days will be enough to get a taste of the neighbourhoods we want to see.*
**Day 17 — Leave from HND @ 4pm**